Sisters triumph, share the moment

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May 16, 2017 - 12:00 AM

HUMBOLDT — Eighty-two students with the Humboldt Virtual Education Program transitioned from high school students to graduates in a ceremony Sunday at Humboldt High School.
Among the graduates were sisters Kim King, 18, and Page King, 16.
Kim and Page both attended Chanute High School; Kim up through her junior year and Page through her freshman year.
Neither sister said she was happy in the traditional school setting.
Kim, lacking only an English and a history class, which she was able to complete in a month’s time, kept her graduation date on target, while Page was able to graduate two years earlier than her graduating class.
“I worked every single day on it,” Page said, adding that she dedicated an average of eight hours a day, Monday through Friday, to her coursework as well as weekends.
Kim’s decision to enroll was based on her desire to work as a full-time CNA at a nursing home. As not one of the “popular-more-wealthy students,” Kim said she felt anonymous at CHS.
“I told my mom I am done. I do not even want to go through with my senior year,” she said.
Enrolling in the virtual program allowed her to take only the credits she needed to graduate without filling up her time. 
“I got my full 40 hours a week at work and was also able to do school,” she said. Since she finished her coursework in September, she has opened a licensed daycare facility in her home and is pursuing a nursing degree online.
Crude comments and bullying prompted Page to drop out of the traditional public school system. It was a family decision to allow Page to enroll in the virtual program. Their mother, Becky, supported the decision after addressing the bullying problems numerous times, Page said. Kim never faced those types of issues at school and did not want her sister to have to go through it alone.
Page is a little nervous about graduating so young, but intends to apply to college this summer. She is hoping to get a CNA certificate. She said it was easier for her to get through the virtual program because she got the one-on-one assistance that she felt she was not able to get through the traditional method. Tutoring in science and mathematics classes, subjects she struggled with, was readily available, she said.
“It was one of the best choices we made to do our education online,” Kim said.
Both the young women walked the stage in honor of their mother for Mother’s Day.

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